To whom it may concern: South Sudan may not be ready for elections, yet democracy cannot wait
Posted: 25 July, 2022 Filed under: Joseph Geng Akech | Tags: African expert, challenges, democracy, democratic future, Election Commission, election readiness, elections, Humanitarian relief, International Institute for Democracy and Elections Assistance, legislation, permanence of transitions, political transition, public perceptions, Revitalised Peace Agreement, security stabilisation, South Sudan, Transitional Period, United Nations Mission in South Sudan, unprepared 2 Comments
Author: Joseph Geng Akech
Assistant Professor of Law, University of Juba, and independent researcher in human rights & constitutional designs
Introduction
Early this year, Yach Garang, political science PhD student at the University of Juba authored a blog piece asking ‘will South Sudan be ready for its first democratic elections come 2023?’ According to him, certain benchmarks are critical for South Sudan’s democratic election readiness. These include security stabilisation, enactment of electoral laws, adoption of a new constitution and conduct of population census. While I agree with his ‘benchmarks’, I contend that South Sudan may not be ready for elections, but it is imperative to note that democracy cannot wait for a perfect environment.
This piece, therefore, is addressing those to whom the democratic future of the country remains a priority.
Some reflections on the current Africa’s project on the establishment of African Court of Justice and Human Right (ACJHR)
Posted: 29 June, 2015 Filed under: Tefera Degu Addis | Tags: ACJHR, Africa, African Court of Justice and Human Rights, African Union, AU Summit, challenges, crimes against humanity, customary international law, genocide, ICC, International Criminal Court, International Criminal law, International Tribunal, jurisdiction, opportunites, Protocol, Rome Statute, United Nations, war crimes 2 Comments
Author: Tefera Degu Addis
LLM candidate, International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, University of Essex School of Law, UK
It has been more than thirteen years since the ICC was established and started its operation on most serious crimes of international concern, namely genocide, crime against humanity, crimes of war and aggression. The court is established by virtue of the Rome Statute as a permanent international criminal tribunal independent from other UN bodies. To date, all cases that have been investigated by ICC are from Africa. African countries generally have cooperated in the early stages of the establishment of ICC.
Nowadays, however, it seems that the relationship between the ICC and Africa is turning into a growing trend of contention. It has been a point of discussion in the academia and in the international politics as to whether the court is indeed exclusively targeting Africa regardless of their contribution and cooperation in the creation and advancement of ICC. The AU and various leaders in Africa have expressed their dissatisfaction in different occasions that the court is “neo-colonialist policy” or “post-colonial court.” As a result, the AU in 2008 adopted a protocol on the establishment of African Court of Justice and Human Rights (ACJHR). The protocol is being circulated and so far 11 countries have signed the document. Last year at the AU Summit, the current president of Kenya urged for the immediate establishment of the court.
Notwithstanding the current uncertainty about the fate of the Draft Protocol and thereby the establishment of the ACJHR, it is worthwhile to examine some of the challenges and opportunities that the court might face and the future of international criminal justice in Africa.
AfricLaw 